Zouzou

For some time now, I've been dancing around this fragrance. The second bottle is almost finished, and today I finally had a picture in my mind.

I see a beautiful, well-groomed lady (sandalwood, iris, vanilla) swaying back and forth to Cuban, Latin American sounds. In front of her is a cup of espresso, next to her sits a well-groomed gentleman (vetiver, mandarin petitgrain), and around them, people are dancing, the wooden floor vibrating. A scent of dark cocoa wafts through the air.

This fragrance doesn't let go of you. Unlike Cacao Porcelana, here the rum and sandalwood create an incredibly good contrast to the cocoa, the iris root, the vanilla. Dry, yet somewhat creamy, rough, but a bit sweet, and now here it comes: a fresh, yet dark cocoa note. Crazy, and it works.

It is not a classic gourmand, not a classic iris, and not a classic sandalwood. It’s as if the sounds of the Buena Vista Social Club flowed through Cacao Porcelana, making it sharper, yet cooler and more relaxed.

Ay candela, candela, candela, me quemo aé.
Ay candela, candela, candela, me quemo aé.

I am aflame for Iris Cartagena.

Test it.

Finally, there is a fragrance that is gourmand yet does not make everyone around you raise their eyebrows in surprise.

But let's start from the beginning; there are few notes listed, and who knows what thorn apple smells like? What I perceive is a sour cherry (maybe the combination of thorn apple and grapefruit?) with cinnamon. In the drydown, the Palo Santo and Ylang-Ylang become more pronounced, but the cinnamon's slightly sour, powdery essence remains.
The longevity is above average.

I really like it. There is a hint of retro music in the background that I (still) can't quite place (I just attribute it to the thorn apple), but it doesn't come across as outdated. I don't know which component of this fragrance contributes to its lightness; perhaps it's the Ylang-Ylang…

Floral isn't quite the right word to describe this scent; sweet with a sour background and then cinnamon-powdery-woody - oh, it really is a fine combination and will appeal to people beyond their twenties.

It could certainly be worn by men, but "ladylike" comes to mind for this fragrance.

A noble gourmand for the light of day.
Test it!!!

… I connect this word "BOLD" with this fragrance on multiple levels.

Bold, because black sesame is used in a perfume here, and we really do not have a gourmand in front of us. Even among gourmands, sesame only became interesting to a large number of people much later. In this scent, sesame is combined with honey to create a beautifully warm undertone.

Bold, because carrot (carrot seed) occupies a central place in the composition, and (unfortunately) there don’t seem to be many fans for this fragrance note (Bohoboco released a fragrance that was even bold enough to carry carrot in its name. What can I say, a brilliantly daring scent that doesn’t fare well here in this forum.).

Bold, because it has edges and character for a mainstream designer fragrance, and too much character always carries the risk that sales may not be high enough.

Bold, because I feel bolder with this fragrance. It gives me a push of cheerfulness (mandarin and honey) on truly wobbly days, a pinch of grounding (black sesame, carrot, and patchouli), a sense of freedom (carrot and jasmine), and a dose of determination (bitter orange, carrot, and cedarwood).

It doesn’t take much courage to wear it, and even less to test it. If I were you, I would dare…

Caudalie has released a perfume? Already in 2023? And I only find out about it by chance 2 years later. But well, everyone (maybe even I too much) is so busy with the latest cherry, tonka, and sesame scents and the coolest niche brands.

Good for us, you Ange des Vignes and me, so I can calmly write why I consider you a good (light) fragrance.

Allegedly you have only four notes. I can't believe it, it seems to me that there are also some woody and slightly bitter green aspects that are part of your fragrance DNA. I always have my inner dispute with neroli, sorry, and even with you I wish for a different citrus note, but oh well.

Your fruity sweetness is elevated into a beautiful balance anyway. And then in the
drydown you become this beautiful, light, well-groomed, powdery chypre scent.

A unicorn in the ongoing gourmand flood. And I dare to say, if you were a fragrance in a Privé line, you would have received the attention and recognition you deserve.

A good chypre is a good chypre is a good chypre... don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

Rarely has a top note overwhelmed me so much. So much blood orange, bitter, zesty accords, I briefly thought: Damn, you can forget this scent, this bitter thing won't enrich your life.

How wrong was I?!

After five minutes, a truly extraordinary orange scent revealed itself. It feels like a molecular fragrance and has something slightly aquatic. Then it turns green, and the basil becomes prominent (and somehow I would have preferred sage as the green note here, maybe because basil is so predictable).
It is not a sweet or, in the true sense, fresh and clean creation.
Absolutely unisex.

In the end, a creamy, slightly woody, skin-close orange remains. Very clear, like sun-kissed skin in the evening. And I catch myself sniffing my wrist and dreaming of my next vacation.

I love it when scents let me dream.